A parish council chairman has urged villagers to be more considerate after a litany of poor behaviour locally.

Alastair McCraw, Brantham parish council chairman and Babergh district councillor, is flabbergasted at the actions of a minority of people as Covid-19 disrupts all our lives.

Cllr McCraw spoke out after a sign, notifying villagers that a play area was unavoidably closed, was ripped down, an increase in dog owners not picking up their animal's mess and a rise in speeding through the village.

"There are some constants in the life of a Parish Council. Play areas, footpaths, dog fouling and speeding all come to our attention every month," said Cllr McCraw. "At the moment though, all these concerns are subtly, and not so subtly, changed by the COvid-19 crisis.

"We had to close our play areas, including the green bits that provided exercise space for people and dogs. One of the closure signs has recently been torn down. Why? Was it some bold strike for freedom against the oppressive regime of the storm-troopers of the Parish Council? No, it's just wilful ignorance. Which happens."

Many villages have noticed that dog mess has not been bagged and binned as much as before and Brantham has experienced the same issue, despite nothing changing in terms of the council emptying the dog bins.

Cllr McCraw said: "There's anecdotal evidence that with fewer people around to see them, people are not bothering to clear up after their dogs and use the frankly enormous number of dog litter bins we all supply and pay for. 

"We want our footpath network to stay open, but it can get narrower than two metres, and there are places where caution is required near the Brantham Factories. And dogs are walked off the leash? It's not wise, no matter how well trained."

Tim Passmore, Suffolk's police and crime commissioner, last week responded to an open letter sent by Cllr McCraw regarding speeding on the peninsula.

He added: "The open roads have encouraged the foolish and selfish Mr Toads to roar through 30mph built up areas at 50 or more."

Cllr McCraw called on villagers, everywhere, to be more considerate of others and not let their standards drop.

He said: "It is all rather frustrating, if seemingly trivial, but we struggle on with the task in hand, like all the other parish councils before us have done.

"At a time when it should be clear and obvious that we need to think of others more than ever, if only because it makes the world safer for all of us, some people don't seem to want to get it.

"Stay at home, stay very local if you can, think about what you are doing and why. We really are more interconnected than we've maybe ever been."